Mark Twain returns to UMKC
Jessie Burche
Issue date: 4/28/08 Section: Culture
Mark Twain is coming back to Kansas City this June. The Mark Twain creative writing workshop, that is.
The workshop is named after Samuel Clemen's pen name as a tribute to the Missouri writer, according to Robert Stewart, editor of New Letters magazine and one of the teachers at the Mark Twain.
"He represents the kind of skeptical realistic tough minded view of the world that we aspire to," Stewart said.
The workshop is in its 29th year according to newletters.org. This year, Stewart and Michael Pritchett, an assistant professor of English and professional writer, will teach the workshop.
"I focus on poetry and literary non-fiction. The fiction writer is Michael Pritchett," Stewart said
The workshop runs three hours a day, five days a week. The day starts at 9:30 a.m. with an hour-long presentation. Sometimes Stewart or Pritchett speak. However, there are also many guest speakers who will present during this time.
"All the different kinds of writers participate in all the different kinds of presentations about writing," Stewart said. "… It expands their sense of the possibilities of their own type of writing."
This year some of the guest speakers will be Laura Moriarity, Greg Michaleson and Jack Fuller. Fuller will hold a publishing symposium during the workshop where he'll speak about how to get published.
There are also some creative writing teachers from UMKC speaking. Michelle Boisseau, Christie Hodgen, Hadara Bar-Nadav and Mitch Brian will speak, along with other professors.
"That's another thing that's exciting about the Mark Twain is that all these different guest speakers come in. Every day is different from the day before," Stewart said. "There's no monotony at the Mark Twain."
After the morning presentation, poetry and non-fiction students go with Stewart and fiction students go with Pritchett. Students workshop their material the rest of the morning.
"To me it's a time to really break loose from the traditional classroom structure," Stewart said. "… We have a lot of fun during those three weeks. There's a tremendous amount of camaraderie that's built up."
The workshop is named after Samuel Clemen's pen name as a tribute to the Missouri writer, according to Robert Stewart, editor of New Letters magazine and one of the teachers at the Mark Twain.
"He represents the kind of skeptical realistic tough minded view of the world that we aspire to," Stewart said.
The workshop is in its 29th year according to newletters.org. This year, Stewart and Michael Pritchett, an assistant professor of English and professional writer, will teach the workshop.
"I focus on poetry and literary non-fiction. The fiction writer is Michael Pritchett," Stewart said
The workshop runs three hours a day, five days a week. The day starts at 9:30 a.m. with an hour-long presentation. Sometimes Stewart or Pritchett speak. However, there are also many guest speakers who will present during this time.
"All the different kinds of writers participate in all the different kinds of presentations about writing," Stewart said. "… It expands their sense of the possibilities of their own type of writing."
This year some of the guest speakers will be Laura Moriarity, Greg Michaleson and Jack Fuller. Fuller will hold a publishing symposium during the workshop where he'll speak about how to get published.
There are also some creative writing teachers from UMKC speaking. Michelle Boisseau, Christie Hodgen, Hadara Bar-Nadav and Mitch Brian will speak, along with other professors.
"That's another thing that's exciting about the Mark Twain is that all these different guest speakers come in. Every day is different from the day before," Stewart said. "There's no monotony at the Mark Twain."
After the morning presentation, poetry and non-fiction students go with Stewart and fiction students go with Pritchett. Students workshop their material the rest of the morning.
"To me it's a time to really break loose from the traditional classroom structure," Stewart said. "… We have a lot of fun during those three weeks. There's a tremendous amount of camaraderie that's built up."
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